HELENA - When Sen. Sharon Stewart Peregoy, D-Crow Agency, stood
among fellow members of the Montana Senate during swearing-in
ceremonies, she spoke in her Crow language, breaking the state's
English-only law.

Peregoy, a bilingual educator, said she invoked her "senatorial
privileges" as Crow friends and family watched from the balcony in
the Senate chambers. The state calls for all official state
business to be conducted in English.

The Crow woman is one of nine members of the American Indian
Caucus, one of the most representative Native contingents in the
country with Native legislators at an even match with the state's 6
percent Indian population.

As a Native caucus member, she said the nine-member group would
"stand in unison for anything brought forth by tribal leaders
across the state."

The 61st session marks Peregoy's first term in the Montana
Senate. While she didn't submit any bills for debate during the
90-day session, she will support colleagues' legislation. She said
she also plans to speak up during legislative debates on bills that
would affect Native people.

A history in education

Peregoy, a research and development specialist for the Crow
tribe, has dedicated a good part of her work to education. She has
run the gamut in the classroom environment, working with students
from kindergarten through elementary school. She is now an adjunct
professor at Little Big Horn Tribal College.

When the legislative session opened on Jan. 5, she had
considered proposing a bill to create a charter or alternative
school to help improve the learning environment for Native
students. The majority of Native students attend public schools on
or around reservations. But each year, those schools typically fail
to meet federal annual yearly progress, or AYP standards.

"The community should have an opportunity to say, 'This isn't
working,' " said Peregoy. "Let's take a look at this. There are
schools that are struggling but there is no mandate that says,
'Your schools are struggling and you haven't been meeting the AYP
and it's obvious that what you are doing is not meeting the needs.'
"

Peregoy said there should be some form of intervention to help
such schools.

She decided not to introduce the alternative school bill, given
the financial restraints on the Legislature this year. The bill
likely would not have received funding, meaning schools would have
to use existing money for an alternative school, she said.

But, the idea for alternative teaching methods is still
possible, even if there is no legislation. "You're looking at
quality instruction, quality schools," she said. "If you do that,
the community would have to have a big buy-in; otherwise, it
doesn't work. You can throw a lot of money at stuff, but I find
it's the commitment of the community and the commitment of the
teachers and administrators."

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"If they have that commitment, they can make the change and make
the improvement," said the senator. "You have to have the vision to
carry it through, the vision will carry you through when there's
very few dollars."

Peregoy is a graduate of Montana State University in Bozeman,
where she studied elementary education. She earned her master's
degree in curriculum instruction from Seattle University. She has
also worked with the Office of Bilingual Language Affairs.

Promoting culture

"From the beginning, I've been promoting Native language and
culture and integrating it into the classroom," she said. "That was
before this administration went with English only." She has seen
how bilingual students falter in school's that present information
in an English-only format.

Peregoy sees bilingual students arrive in the classroom with
basic interpersonal language skills, but often lacking academic
English skills. "And that's where they fail," she said.

The educator introduced herself to her Senate colleagues in her
Crow language to press the importance of supporting bilingual
education.

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